One search across the UK's independent record shops

soundsfound is a vinyl search engine for independent record shops in the UK. Type in an artist or an album and it searches every shop on the list in one go, so you don't have to open tab after tab to find out who has the record you're after. Vinyl, CDs and cassettes, new pressings and reissues, signed copies and limited editions, all from independent shops.

Search for a record

How the vinyl search engine works

  1. 01

    Search once.

    Enter an artist, an album, or both. Suggestions help if you only remember part of the name.

  2. 02

    Watch the results arrive.

    soundsfound checks each shop as you search and streams results in as each one responds, so you can start browsing straight away. Results may be cached for up to an hour, so we can deliver fast results without annoying the stores.

  3. 03

    Compare the copies.

    Results are grouped by artist, release and shop, with the format, edition details, price and availability for each copy. You can narrow things down by format and maximum price, and filter search results to signed copies only.

  4. 04

    Buy from the shop.

    Every result links to that shop's own website. You check out with them, not with us.

Not a marketplace

soundsfound doesn't sell records, and there's no checkout here. It's a record search engine that points you at the independent record shop that actually has the copy, and the click goes straight to them. soundsfound never hides which shop a record comes from, and the shop stays front and centre the whole way through. If you want to buy records online from independent shops rather than the big chains, that's exactly what it's for.

Signed and limited editions

The same album can turn up as a standard LP, a coloured vinyl, a signed copy, a CD or a cassette, with a different price at every shop. soundsfound shows those editions side by side, and on search results you can filter to signed copies only. If you're hunting signed vinyl in the UK, or a limited edition pressing before it sells out, one search tells you which independent shops have it.

The shops we search

soundsfound currently searches 15 independent record shops:

Is your favourite shop missing?
and we'll look at adding it.

Who built it

I'm an avid record collector so I know the pain of searching for specific pressings well: open one shop, search, open the next, search again, and end up with a row of tabs to compare. If you're after a signed copy, it's worse still.

So I built the thing I wanted: one search across independent record shops that tells me who has the record and sends me to them to buy it. Independent shops already have the stock, the knowledge and the relationship with their customers. soundsfound just makes their catalogues easier to search together.

I wrote about why I built it in Meet soundsfound, and you can find out more about me and my other work at developkerr.com.

Questions

Is soundsfound a marketplace?
No. soundsfound doesn't sell anything and has no checkout. It searches independent record shops and links you straight to the shop's own website, where you buy the record from them.
Which record shops does soundsfound search?
15 independent UK record shops: Assai, Banquet, Bear Tree, Blood Records, Crash Records, Flashback Records, Jumbo Records, Monorail Music, Sister Ray, Spillers Records, Spindizzy Records, Stranger Than Paradise, Truck Store, Vinilo and Vinyl Tap. You can request another shop from the site.
Can I find signed vinyl?
Yes. When a search turns up signed copies, a Signed filter appears so you can show only those.
How up to date are the results?
soundsfound checks the shops as you search. Results may be cached for up to an hour, so we can deliver fast results without annoying the stores. Stock at independent shops moves fast, so the shop's own page always has the final word.